West Sacramento, Calif. —Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC) received a $25,000 grant this week from the S.L. Gimbel Foundation Advised Fund at The Community Foundation – Inland Southern California to support Agua4All, a program that brings safe drinking water to rural families through access to water bottle filling stations installed at local schools and community sites.
“We are pleased and excited to add the Gimbel Foundation to the growing list of partners who share our concern for the too large number of children in rural California who do not have regular access to safe drinking water,” said Stanley Keasling, RCAC’s Chief Executive Officer.
RCAC, in partnership with the California Endowment and two local organizations, Pueblo Unido CDC and Community Water Center, launched Agua4All to raise awareness about the lack of safe drinking water access in schools and communities; create unique public-private partnerships to install water taps where they are needed most; and advocate for sustainable long-term solutions to ensure safe drinking water for all.
Funding for Agua4All continues to be a high priority for RCAC as the most recent state survey estimated that 384 small community water systems and schools haven’t supplied safe drinking water to their communities and schoolchildren. Access to safe drinking water is essential for good health and education. Long-term exposure to unsafe drinking water containing contaminants such as Arsenic can cause cancer and a host of other illnesses. It has also been associated with developmental effects, cardiovascular disease, neurotoxicity and diabetes. Increased water consumption is also important to children’s development and overall community health.
RCAC is a nonprofit organization that provides training, technical and financial resources and advocacy so rural communities can achieve their goals and visions. Headquartered in West Sacramento, California, RCAC serves rural communities in the western United States and the Pacific islands. RCAC has strong core services and expertise in housing, environmental infrastructure (water, wastewater and solid waste), leadership training, economic development and financing. To find out more about RCAC, visit www.rcac.org.
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Contact :
Dawn Van Dyke
RCAC Communications Mgr.
916-539-6696
dvandyke@rcac.org
